Silo.



PATENTED APR. 23, 1907.

P. 5. HUDSON.

SILO.

APPLICATION FILED JAN. 30, 1907.

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FREDERICK a. HUDSON, or ELLISBURG, NEW roan.

SEL.

Specification of Letters Patent. l

Application flleil January 30,1907. flerial. no. 354.3111.

- I This invention relates to improvements in pressing of the ensilage, which 1s essential to .silos, designed for. use by farmers, dairymen and others for the storing, curing lnd di r charging of ensilage.

The object of the invention is to provide a stave silo,. which is sim le, strong and inexpensive, and wherein, t e construction and arrangement of the tank is such that its interior 1s entirely free and clear'pffparts which ere with themay obstruct, and'thereby inter convenient handling, or the settling or comtheproper curing and preserving of the'sariie. A further object is to provide vsimple means I comprising a series'of closely fitting and readtank havingan unobstructed and clearinteily detachable doors, for use in entering and discharging the silage, the said doorshaving no connection with each other, and in equipping each door with simple but strong securing devices, as well as means for suspending and holding them, when opeii, in a safe and convenient position ready for usewhn it is desired to close and fill the silo.

' The invention further consists in novel means for effecting the splicing. or joining of the ends of the staves which comprise the tank or body of the silo, and for binding and holding the same when assembled. 7

I Other features and parts of the invention will. be fully understood from the detail description which follows, and by reference to the accom anyingdrawing forming a part of this speci cation, and in-which 1 Figure'l is an elevation and part section of my improved silo, showing the principal features and parts and the manner of constructing and. arranging the same. Fig. 2 is a sectional view, substantiall on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1., showing the close circular walls of the rior. Fig. 3 is a detail perspective view, showing one of the openings for the discharge of the ensilage; also'showing the novel manner in which the detachable door is suspend.- ed and held away from the opening by gravity.

in Cplace and preventing the warping 0 .to corresponding parts throughout the several view In the drawings, 2 re resents the silo com- .plete, which is prefera ly made of wood in PatentedApri123,1907.

the form of long narrow staves 3, which are i matched and joined together'to form a tight closure, circular in form, into which ensilage or other material for feeding cattle may be stored'and preserved. rests upona foundaticn, which may be made of any suitablematerial, but I prefer to cm ploy concrete or rock, in the manner shownin the drawing.

Silos are forty feet in eight, and from eight to sixteen feet in diameter, and t'o provide a strong and endurin structure of the class, the stavles 3 are cut in different lengths, from six to twelve feet, and width and thickness. staves, they areapplied in alternate courses or layers so as'tcbreak joints. Where more of any suitable than one'stalve'isfused in a course, the abut ting ends arels uared and then slotted and a steel or iron sp inc 4 is inserted ,in'the slots, for the purpose of holding the staves rigidllly t e s and'the o ening oi the joints by the action of the e ements. W hen the circular wooden tank comprising the silo is completed, a suitable roof 5 is securely mounted upon its to and a filling door or window 6 is provide and disposed at a convenient point just above the upper end of the tank.

.The silo may be constructed away from the site 1 it is to occu y, and afterwards mounted upon the foun ation, but I prefer to build the tank right on the foundation, and then fill in concrete or like substance until the floor or bottom is raised two or three inches above the lowerend of the tank. The upper surface forming the floor of the silo should be covered with a heavy coating of enerally built from twenty to usually varying The silo preferably In assembling the cement and finished level and smooth Under this construction, the bottom ofthe tank will beheld securely in place and tightly sealed, and. the tank cannot become shifted upon its foundation.

"In constructing my silo, the tank and all of the other parts, such as the roof, doors and ficor arejoined in a manner which will'make the Whole practically air-tight and watertight, such condition being essential for the Similar numerals of reference are assigned proper curing of the silage.

7, 7 represents a series of metallic hoops or bands, preferably round steel or iron, which surround the tank and are disposed in pairs at regular intervals, as shown in Fig. 1.

These bands are provided with adjustable draw-lugs 9 adapted to receive the threaded ends of the hoops, and w th suitable nuts 10 which are employed for drawing and holding the hoops taut.

- A series of openings 11 are cut in one side of the silo, preferably arranged one above the other, as shown. These openings should be disposed at .equal distances from each other, the lowermost one extending to within about one footof the bottomof the silo, and

. the uppermost one ending about the same distance from the top of the tank. The openings 11 should be large enough for a man to enter readily and to discharge the ensilage through the same by the use of a fork or shovel. As hinged doors could not be relied upon to make an air-tight seal of the dis- Then the lower ends are cut parallel to the upper ends, which gives the bevel at the lower end of the door a downward and outward slant, as shown in Fig. 3. Theside edges of each door, are also beveled inwardly, so that the inner face of the door is narrower than the outer face. The employment of these latter features render it possible to make the doors air-tight.

13 represents a metallic part in the nature of a double hasp, which is securely bolted to the lower part of each door, and having per forated ends which extend several inches be yond the sides or edges of the door.

14, 14 represent studs or bolts which are driven through the tank wall on each side of the openings 11, and having their projecting outer ends threaded. These studs are disposed so that they register with the perforations 15 of the hasp 13. When the doors are placed in the openings 11 and the hasps slipped over the studs 14, handle-nuts16 are applied, and when the latter are screwed up tight, they draw or force the doors into the openings until all of the joints around them are air-tight.

' The upper ends of the doors are held in place and flush with the inner and outer surfaces of the tank by the inwardly sloping bevels at the top and sides, the lower ends are bound and held by the hasps and handnuts, and when once secured in placcin the manner described, the doors will remain in that position and withstand the heavy pressure from the ensilage within, until the handle-nuts are removed and the lower ends. made free.

In order to brace and hold together the upper ends of the staves comprising the doors, I

provide a part 17, similar in form to that of the hasps 13, except that the ends do not projectbeyond the sides of the doors. This part is also securely bolted to the doors. The parts 13 and 17 are each provided with a looped handle 19 for use in inserting and removing the doors.

The doors of the silo must necessarily be of the same thickness and weight proportionately as the walls of the tank, innorder to fit and fill the openings 11, and also to stand the great strain exerted ,by' the compressed.

silage, and when made large enough to be serviceable they are too heavy for one person to handlewithout some means to assist in opening and closing them. To that end I have provided a stout chain, or like flexible part 20, one end of which is attached to the door near its upper end, the other end being secured to the wall of the'tank at a point which will allow the'door, when released, to

gravitate away from and hang clear of the opening, as shov'gn in Fig. 3.

To'enable a person to reach the doors which are disposed one above the other, I

i have provideda simple ladder, extending from the bottom to the top of the silo,and consisting of a series of metallic or wooden rounds or cleats 21, which are bolted or otherwise suitably secured to the outside ofthe tank.

The silos are generally f' led withensilage in the fall of the year by passing it through the-filling window-6, and after it'ferments and becomes cured, it is then fed to the cattle. When the feeding begins, the handlenuts are removed from'the u permost door 12, and the latter is removed rom the opening and allowed to swing ofl to one side by means of the chain -20. The person incharge enters the silo through the openingand throws out the silageand it drops into a wagon or other receptacle which is laced directly below the opening. After t e ensilage has been removed to a certaindepth, the second door from the tolpis opened in the same manner, and soon ti 1 the silo is emptied. The doors are then left in open position until the next filling up of the silo takes place.

Long experience in the use of silos has shown that to prepare and preserve ensila e in the best manner, it is important that-it e packed in the silo and allowed to settle evenly as uniform t roughout every part of t e tank,

movable parts must be made and main- 1possible, so that the curin may be i and the tanks, including the doors and other tained air-tight, or else the food will become s oiled. It is important also that the mova le arts should be Inadeand disposed in a sim e manner, so that the may be handled wit the least exertion an a's'readily as possible. Having these ends in view, and also a desire to increase the strength and lessen the expense of devices of the class, I have devised and constructed my improved silo in the manner herein shown and described, providing a clear and free interior together with the novel and simple m'eans for open ing, closing and suspending the discharge doors. I

It I is obvious that changes or modifica tions may be made in the form and arrangement of .some of the parts without de art'ing from the'spirit of my invention, and .therefore do not restrict myself to the precise construction and application of the same as 3 herein described and shown.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to securebyLetters Patent, is-

1. A silo, com rising a tubular tank, a discharge'opening ormed through the wall of said tank, the ends and sides thereof being beveled in different directions, a beveled edge door adapted to fit and tightly close able door adapted to close each of said open ings from the outside, a chain to support and a chain to support sa1d door carry, each door when in open'position, a

hasp secured to the lower part of each door, 'a pair of'studs to enga e the ends of said hasp, and a pair of hand e-nuts to hold each door in closed position, substantially as described.

3. A silo, com an unobstructe rising a stave-tank having interior, a series of discharge openings formed in the side of said tank disposed one'above the other, a movable doo'r adapted to close each opening from the outside, a hasp secured to the lowerpart of each door, a pair of studs adapted to env gage the ends of said has and a pair of nuts to hold each door in c osed position, substantially as described.

4. A SllO, com rlsing a circular tank haviii an unobstructe lnterior throu hout its ful length, a series of detachable oors formed by cutting out a tank, the said ortion of the wall of said oors being arranged one above the other at equal distance apart and adapted to be inserted in the discharge 0 enings onlyfrom the outside of theta a chain attached to each doorand to said tank by means of Which the doors, when open, are

suspended on one side and clear ,ofthe discharge openings, a double hasp carried by each' door, a pair of studs projecting from said tank near the lower endof each door,

and a-pair of handle-nuts adapted to 09-0 erate withsaid hasp and said studs for in and holding said door in closed position,

7 Sn stantially as described.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesse S FREDERICK E. HUDSON.

Witnesses:

EDGAR L. BLoonoUen, HARRY DE WALLACE. 

